


A Shift In Perspective

by AppleCherry108



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Realities, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Lance (Voltron), Post-Season 4, au - au lol, you'd think slav would be in it but he's not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-14
Updated: 2018-03-14
Packaged: 2019-03-21 05:37:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13734270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AppleCherry108/pseuds/AppleCherry108
Summary: In the wake of a devastating loss, Lance struggles to keep the team together.





	A Shift In Perspective

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, bear with me here.
> 
> I've been working on this fic since season 4, saving and resaving this damn draft and I'll tell you hwat--I am SICK of transferring this over every dang month.
> 
> So no, this is not the first complete chapter, but I need it posted so ao3 won't delete it in 30 days. Should I use google docs? Probably. But I don't. So here we are.
> 
> This IS my current project, I AM working on it, but when I'm finally ready to post the real chapter 1, it'll be polished and possibly completely different.
> 
>  
> 
> But have this opening scene for now I guess.

The first sensation his mind registers is pain.

Lance bolts forward, gasping for a sharp breath that stings his lungs. His vision swims with blurred lights and colors, a loud ringing in his ears drums a dull pain through his skull. His hands stiffly flail at his sides until they find a smooth, rounded edge. Lance blinks repeatedly, willing the world around him to stop spinning. Everything fades back to normalcy far too slowly, but once he gets his bearings straight, he realizes he's in the medical bay, leaning halfway out of a healing pod.

He continues to take deep, shaky inhales, like his body has forgotten its basic functions. As each limb and organ seems to reboot from the slumber of the pod, Lance becomes aware of a dull ache in his chest. He presses a hand into his skin, just above his heart. His fingers press harder and harder but he can't seem to find the source of the pain. A soft _whoosh_ pulls his attention away.

" _Lance._ "

It's Allura. She hovers in the doorway, looking wide-eyed and out of breath, almost like she ran all the way here. Her face contorts into a half-sob and then she's rushing into the room. The lights blink on in her wake and only then is Lance aware how dark the med bay had been. Allura reaches his pod and throws her arms around him, knocking all the air out of him. Her grip is almost painfully strong and Lance can't tell if he's just sore or if she's squeezing too hard. It's surreal, actually, to have the princess hold him like this and sob into his shoulder. Lance distantly wonders if maybe this is a dream.

"Lance?!"

" _Lance!_ "

Hunk and Pidge appear next, colliding bodily behind Allura and further inhibiting Lance's ability to breathe. He wheezes, hand flailing. They finally get the memo and let up on him. They back away to give him room to breathe, but each of them keep a tight grip on his arms or sides, almost as if he'll float away if they let go.

"What happened?" he croaks, voice low and gravelly. His throat hurts.

"Do you remember anything?" _When did Coran get here?_

Lance scowls with the effort of trying to get his foggy brain to work. He remembers...Naxela. And Lotor. And...

"Shiro..." he manages. He looks up just in time to see everyone's face fall. He swallows in an effort to steady his voice and confidence. "I remember...Shiro wasn't...Shiro."

"Yes," Allura confirms quietly, "anything else?"

Lance hums--or maybe growls--a sharp pain working its way between his eyes as he tries to make sense of the vague flashes and fuzzy memories. "Haggar," he continues, "there was a fight and... I was hit." Clarity slams into him all at once, a cold dread prickling the back of his neck. "How long...?"

Heavy footsteps draw his attention back to the door.

Keith.

Wearing his paladin armor. _When did that happen?_

They lock eyes across the room. Lance notes the dark, heavy bags under Keith's eyes, the exhaustion clear on his every feature. Keith doesn't budge. He stands there, bracing himself on the door frame with one hand as his chest heaves, his expression unreadable.

"Five quintants."

Lance rips his gaze away from Keith and back to Allura, only to find she won't meet his eyes. She presses her chin into her clasped prayer hands and closes her eyes.

"You were in the healing pod for five quintants." She says it quietly but confidently, voice only wavering once.

Lance turns to the others. They all look varying degrees of avoidant. It makes sense, he thinks. Five days is longer than any of them had been under before--they must've been worried sick.

He looks back to the door to gauge Keith's reaction but the other boy is gone. Allura starts saying something again but her words go in one ear and out the other. Lance scans the room but still can't find Keith.


End file.
